TRANSMIGRATION

As a developing country one of the problems facing Indonesia is that the population is not evenly spread. The islands of Java, Madura and Bali are populated so densely that it may cause social and economic problems like jobless, crime, housing, education, health, etc.

A program of transmigration is in fact one of the many ways to deal with these serious problems. People from there islands are removed and resettled in the a rural areas of under populated islands such as Sulawesi, Papua (Irian Jaya), Kalimantan, and Sumatra for a better living.

In addition to transmigration, family planning and demographic training are also believed to be effective solutions.

Why should transmigration be carried out? To answer this, extensive research is in fact needed to collect data or information for the policy makers on demography in Indonesia. Yet, without doing such research we can still argue that transmigration is crucial for Indonesian development in the future. This is due to the following facts, high birth rate, and internal migration rate to Java, and the public ignorance of transmigration.

On the basis of the high birthrate at 1,98% in 1990, java will be the first ranked since it is inhabited by 61,56% of 179.247.783 the total population according to the 1990 census. Consequently, this region itself overcrowded having, an average, 841 people per square kilometer compared with 24 inhabitants per square kilometers in other regions.

Another thing that causes overpopulation in Java is the migration of people from other islands to this region. There are various factors that facilitate this migration. They are the quality of transportation and communication, the rapid increase in tourism and finally Java is the centre of education in Indonesia.

Public awareness of joining transmigration is one of the central things to support the government policy. But unfortunately, in certain regions, there is a principle by which most people believe and behave, “makan tidak makan asal kumpul”. This principle hinders the transmigration program. We are all responsible for making people sure that joining transmigration saves our children and grandchildren in the future.